How to
by Master Jesse
Summary: .:Complete:. Shikamaru has one bad day and it leads to a few not so bad, but pretty complicated days.
1. Fall

The chattering. The noise. The laughter. It just keeps getting louder.

If you ignored the noise filling the room you could hear the rhythmic beat of a certain chunin's head as it connected over and over with the fake wood of his desk. His hands were covering his ears and his eyes were closed. He was trying to ignore the dozen people in the room. He didn't even know that many people and he certainly didn't know why they were in his room. At a screeching laugh that rang in his ears even through his hands he jumped to his feet. His chair fell to the ground and rolled into a corner, hiding from the wrath of its master.

"Out! All of you! OUT!" He pointed to the door. Twenty one eyes and a pair of dark glasses fell on him. Shikamaru was tempted to poke Ino in her eye just to make it where only twenty eyes were looking at him, but he didn't. He just pointed at the door. "Get out." He said again, and they all slowly, very slowly, walked out. The door slammed and a girl screamed. He snickered, but seeing the trash that had somehow gotten dropped on his previously spotless floor he frowned. He couldn't for the life of him think of how they got trash in the room. Maybe mobs like that spontaneously produce trash? As he was picking up loose sheets of paper he heard the faint creak of his door.

"I THOUGHT I TOLD YOU TO GET OUT!" He turned to glare at whoever had dared to come back, he was fully prepared to choke said person with the trash they had left whenever he saw who was standing in his doorway looking both shocked and offended at the same time. Then again, the Hyuuga always looked like something offended him. Except when he was with Hinata. That must be why he was there. He was looking for her. He stared at the wall for a second trying to remember if she had been one of the trash producing chattering moblings. He snickered when he remembered that she had been. She had come with Kiba and Shino to say hi and when Ino started messing with her hair, telling her she should wear it this way and that, they'd been forced to stay. The embarrassed girl had nearly died when Naruto had smiled and said that her hair looked nice in some retarded up do that Ino had been foolish enough to try. "Hinata left already," he replied returning to his janitorial duties. He picked up a banana peel and stared at it. Had Chouji been eating a banana when he came in? He tossed it at the trash can near the door.

"Watch it."

He turned to see a truly disgusted Neji holding the banana peel at arms length. He laughed and pulled the pile of paper into his arms. "You can just drop it in the trash can," Shikamaru said as he dropped the bundle into the can. A few papers bounced off the edges and fell to the ground, but he ignored them. There would be more by the end of the day. He had yet to even begin his work.

"Food shouldn't go in trash cans with papers. You should have a separate one."

Shikamaru looked up at Neji as he stood half in the door half out holding a banana peel and sighed. "Go find one if you can then," he said as he sat down behind his desk. Seeing as his chair had not magically reappeared under his descending bottom and there was nothing for him to sit on except air, and the ground a few feet below he fell. His pony tail could still be seen over the desk, and it started to rise, slowly turning into a red faced Shikamaru head. His dark eyes narrowed on the yellow fruit covering. It was all that things fault. It wasn't really. The peel hadn't done anything except hang from Neji's pale fingers the entire time. It hadn't laughed when he had fallen, or cowered further into the corner, but Shikamaru couldn't take it out on Neji or his chair. He'd need something to sit in later, and Neji... well he'd probably end up hurt after that. He stalked towards the door and grabbed the peel from Neji as he stormed into the hallway.

His footsteps completely overshadowed Neji's light steps as he followed him up the stairs. Two and a half flights later Shikamaru stopped and threw the peel at the ground. He continued up the stairs, but only made it two steps before Neji coughed. You know the cough. Not the cough that says I have something in my throat and I'm trying to get it out, or the cough that says I'm trying to hide laughter because I'm not supposed to be laughing. It was the cough that says you need to pick up the banana peel because its wrong. IT'S WRONG to leave it on the stairs, somebody could fall and you don't want that do you? Shikamaru spun at that cough. He stared down at Neji, liking the fact that he was looking down on him. He glared and tried to say with his eyes that he wasn't picking it up and he couldn't make him.

Neji shrugged and bent down to pick up the peel, but Shikamaru moved. He didn't want anybody picking it up. He stepped on the peel to keep Neji from retrieving it. And we all know what happens when you step on a banana. You fall. Seems rather cartoony doesn't it, but its true. And Shikamaru did just that. He fell. Forward. Down the stairs. Onto Neji, who being the nice person he was didn't jump out of the way to keep from falling himself, but actually tried to stop Shikamaru from falling. It didn't work. They both ended up on the landing. Shikamaru had hit his head just a little too hard on one of the steps and was now sleeping soundly with his head on Neji's chest. Neji was rubbing his own head and groaned as he sat up. Shikamaru's head as it lost its resting place fell to the ground with a hollow thump. Neji's eyes widened and he turned to check on Shikamaru who was still sleeping, although it probably couldn't be called sleeping, unless you consider being knocked out sleeping.

Shikamaru's head and pony tail alike bounced in the air occasionally hitting Neji's back as he carried them down the stairs. He didn't know what to do. Or how he could explain how a chunin and someone with his reputation had fallen down a flight of stairs because of a banana peel. He had that peel in his hand, it was a little worse for the wear, but still whole. He wouldn't leave it for some unlucky person to follow their example. He decided that one of their houses would be better than a hospital. The only problem with that was that he didn't know Shikamaru's family. Oh and his house? He had this odd feeling of being a caveman. Me Thrug. Thrug carry boy cave. Thrug eat. He shrugged, it was a one shouldered shrug since Shikamaru was slung over the other one. To his house it was. He wasn't dropping off the unconscious boy off at his family's house without explanation.

The smell was the only thing Shikamaru could smell when he woke up. It was the smell of laundry soap. And it was all around him. He rolled over and realized his hair was down when it got snagged under his shoulder. He sat up and rubbed his head, there was a huge bump on it. On the night stand sat his pony tail holder. He slipped it onto his wrist and looked around at the room he'd never seen before. He was in a bed he'd never seen before. And it smelled like soap he'd never smelled before. Where was he?

"Are you awake?"

"No," Shikamaru said as a dark head poked in through the barely open door. The smile that spread across Neji's face was almost as unexpected as waking up in his bed.

"Good to see there's no permanent damage to your brain."

Shikamaru frowned as he swung his legs over the side of the bed. He stood up and black filled his vision. He swayed and hand landed on his elbow steadying him. He turned and when his vision cleared he looked at Neji who was looking at him with an analyzing gaze. He looked at his eyes for a little too long and Shikamaru pulled away. Immediately regretting it he grabbed at Neji as he almost fell again.

"Sit back down." Neji said sitting him back on the bed. He disappeared out the door only to return with a plate of food. The plate wasn't steaming, like a new plate would, and when it was lowered enough for Shikamaru to see he realized why. Those were definitely reheated leftovers. It was the only way that chicken could look that fake. Even though the look of the food was disgusting, the smell when it replaced the clean soap smell made his stomach growl. He snatched the plate and shoved food in his mouth. It reminded him of how Naruto ate, and he slowed down.

"You like my cooking?" Neji was watching Shikamaru eating from his perch at the end of the bed. The muffled yes, and the continuous nods made him laugh. "Do you want me to call your parents for you?" Shikamaru stopped his shoveling and looked at Neji. The look screamed for him not to.

"My dad would never let me live it down. And my mom would gripe at me non stop about missing... my first day." He stuck the final bite of food in his mouth and put the plate on the bed. It was snatched off the bed almost as soon as it was set down. Neji held it, looking like a butler waiting for an order, all he needed was the tux and towel over his elbow. Neji returned to his offended look from before. Obviously you don't lay plates on bed. Especially not Hyuuga beds that still smell like detergent. After a few moments of awkward moments Shikamaru stood up again. He stood still gathering himself before walking around Neji and out the door.

"Your cooking?" Shikamaru asked when he saw the kitchen. It was spotless as all the rooms were, but that wasn't what had made him ask. The bag on the counter was. It was one of the bags from a restaurant down the street. "I reheated it," Neji said from behind Shikamaru he looked like he wanted the bag to disappear and Shikamaru along with it. Shikamaru laughed and sat at one of the kitchen tables. Laughing had made his head hurt and his intentions of going back to the tower were destroyed.

"And you did a good job." Neji was taken aback by the comment. He couldn't tell if he was mocking him or if he really thought that he had done a good job. He had tried. The last time he had reheated anything he'd burned it. Burned it so bad that his stove had to have been replaced. He was so worried that he was going to burn down the house this time that he had one of his cousins help him. She'd laughed at him, but had helped nevertheless. Really she had just told him when to take it off. He shrugged off the confusion and decided he was going to put the rest of the leftovers back in the refrigerator.

He looked up at Shikamaru who had been quiet for a while and was shocked to find that he boy had fallen back to sleep. He remembered something about people who have concussions and going to sleep and panicked. He shook Shikamaru softly and after a grunt of disapproval brown eyes opened into a slit and looked at him sharply.

"I think I'm going to call your parents." Neji got up from his knees where he had gone to rouse Shikamaru and went to call, but the hand that wrapped around his wrist and the pleading look stayed him. "Please don't. I'm fine really." Without realizing it he sighed and took a step closer. Shikamaru's hand fell and he stared at the table before him in a daze. "I'm going back to the tower now." The words seemed to be a spell, as if just by saying it he would magically be transported back. He hadn't moved or anything. Neji thought he had fallen asleep again when suddenly he stood.

"Bye," he said walking to the door. He got it open and wobbled slightly as he stepped out. Neji followed. Shikamaru didn't seem to notice, and if he did he didn't care because he continued on. He looked like he was going to fall a few times, but as Neji stepped forward to catch him he caught his self and continued on. By the time they got to the tower Shikamaru was leaning against Neji and his arm was draped over the Hyuuga's shoulders.

The chair was still cowering in the corner. It hadn't moved. The trash was still gathered around the can. It hadn't moved. Even the door was still partly open. Nothing had moved at all. Neji straightened the chair, and barely kept Shikamaru from sitting down on nothing again at the same time. "You really should go home." Shikamaru ignored him and started pulling papers to him. The dull look in his eyes said that he wasn't really reading anything his eyes were skimming over. Neji stood in the corner holding back laughter as Shikamaru went through all of it. His eyes flicked back and forth between the papers and Neji. He was getting frustrated. "I can't work with you watching me!" Neji closed his eyes and snickered. "Just leave, you can check on my tomorrow if you want."

"How do I know you won't go back to sleep?"

"I won't!" In truth Shikamaru had every intention of going to sleep as soon as the bothersome boy left. His head hurt, and his eyes kept trying to fall out. At least that's what it felt like. "I'll finish this and then go home."

"You won't."

Shikamaru started to protest but stopped. It was true, and he wasn't going to deny it this time. A few minutes later Shikamaru threw all his papers at Neji and jumped angrily at him. He said something, but it was muffled by Neji's chest as he fell against it. His arms wrapped around him to keep him from falling.

Neji was walking back to his house with a smile on his face. He was happy enough that when he tripped over a rock he laughed. There was nothing that could ruin his day now. He opened his door and stepped through as if he was floating on cloud nine. If he had been floating though, the infamous banana peel would not have caused him to slip and fall. He could deal with the banana. He was seeing Shikamaru tomorrow.

A/n: Yay! I wrote something new! Its AMAZING! I haven't written anything in like a month.


	2. Breath

Disclaimer: Don't own it.

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The dull throb in the back of his head beat with every breath, hell it beat even if he didn't breath it still ached. Shikamaru was halfway through the stack of papers that he'd read, or at least tried to the day before when he noticed that something was missing. He attempted to think of it, but when one's head hurts and one has to fight just to stay awake, thinking isn't really a strong point. He gave up and when back to his task. The letters slowly formed into words. It was taking him forever to read, but he was getting it done. Because he HAD to. His mom had left him no choice. At all. She'd practically, no not practically. Sh had literally thrown him out the door when he'd complained that his head was killing him.

"I've heard the last of your whining," he murmured to himself in a high pitched voice. He chuckled since it sounded like his mom. He laughed her laugh, the laugh he'd practiced in the mirror for a week when he first tried to imitate her. She'd smacked him good when she had walked in on him laughing at his reflection.

"That is one creepy laugh."

Shikamaru looked up and flinched as the movement sent his brain rocking like a ship on the sea in his brain. He glanced at the clock and sighed. "You're late." Those two words were aimed perfectly at the boy in the door. As if visible Shikamaru watched their path toward him. When they hit him Neji stepped in. Shikamaru hadn't been expecting that at all. He had almost expected Neji to fly back, but that was probably just his mind playing tricks on him, but he truly hadn't thought he would come in. Leave, but not come in.

"I has a run in with your banana again this morning as I was leaving,"Neji said, he rubbed at a pain Shikamaru couldn't see and sat in the only chair in the room, other than the one Shikamaru had taken roost in. It was on the other side of the room. Probably as far from the desk as possible, but Neji didn't bother to move it. He just sat in it and looked at the wall next to it.

"Where is it? Burn that cursed thing!" Shikamaru had leaned over his desk and his hand was bunched in a fist as he talked. He hated that peel. It was the reason his head hurt, and he had a weird feeling in his chest. He wasn't sure about his chest, he wasn't even sure what that was... but he knew that he hadn't felt it before that stupid banana. So it had to be it. He turned the paper on his desk over as he sat back down and started reading the report over. It was bad. Not the bad where with a little tweaking it could be good, just the bad where after you read it you seriously wanted to go wash your brain so you didn't get any of the bad on you. Shikamaru couldn't do that. He wanted to, but even he couldn't wash his brain, even if it was trying desperately to come out of his skull.

"Did you get home ok?"

Shikamaru jumped at the voice. He had forgotten all about Neji. That wasn't a good thing was it? A ninja shouldn't forget that people are around him. Neji was just so quiet. He probably could have sat there the rest of the day and not have been noticed at all. He was like that. Did he like it? Not all the time. It was a good thing in a ninja, but not necessarily in a friend. Most people forgot he was even there, and if they didn't they were the people that just wanted to stare at him. His own teammates forgot sometimes when they went out together. "Yea..." Shikamaru looked at Neji closely. "Why?"

Neji shrugged and turned in the chair to look fully at Shikamaru instead of the wall. The wall was that boring grey color that they always paint walls in offices, and schools. Maybe they got a deal, buy a building of grey paint and get another grey building free. Neji shook his head as if confirming that as true and moved on to something else, like the eyes that were staring at him, still waiting for an answer to the question he'd been asked. That shrug hadn't been enough apparently. Neji lifted his shoulders to shrug again when he stopped and lowered them back down. Shikamaru's gaze had sharpened to a glare as he'd started to move. "I was worried, you got very hurt yesterday."

In truth Neji knew Shikamaru had gotten home just fine. He'd made sure of it. Even after Shikamaru had fallen asleep in his arms, and wouldn't wake up no matter how hard he tried, Neji hadn't taken him home, even though he had wanted to. Instead he had placed him back in his chair which had fallen over again and left, left the room, only to go to the hokage to ask that Shikamaru not be put on any missions. He'd gone back down and had been shocked to find that the boy was gone. He heard grumbling and had followed the noise, and had ended up following him the whole way to his house. He dropped his gaze to the floor and its still dirty state. He felt oddly like a stalker, but that wasn't it. He just wanted to make sure he was safe. It was really important. He wasn't sure why he cared so much, but he did.

"Hyuuga Neji?" The higher pitch of the voice brought both of the boys to the door as the girl stepped in. "The hokage wishes to speak with you."

"This is my room!" Shikamaru stared at the girl and she cowered. She knew this was his room, but she had been told he would be here, and it was urgent. Or urgent enough that she had been hurried off. Neji stood and nodded. The girl ran away much like a dog after its been kicked. Once again the Hyuuga nodded, this time to Shikamaru, and as a farewell. He went up the stairs and knocked cautiously on the door.

Shikamaru had been tempted to follow and see what it was all about but he decided that would be too much effort and after what he could remember about his day yesterday he was going to be very lazy for a while. He returned to the papers, but his mind wandered. About the third time he had found himself staring at the chair his door opened.

"Who died?" Neji flinched at the question. Shikamaru realized that was the wrong thing to ask, but the elder boy looked absolutely grim. The silence that followed his failed joke was beginning to worry the Nara when Neji sighed.

"Here are your orders, we have a mission starting tomorrow. You're off for the day and the hokage suggests that you use the time off to recuperate. I'll meet you outside your house in the morning." Neji recited all of it as if it was a speech he'd said over and over again. Perhaps it had been. Shikamaru raised his eyebrow at the word we. We, as in only the two of us. He'd never been on a two man team before.

After Neji handed Shikamaru the papers he stood in front of the desk. He was unsure of what to do. He had his own orders to do, and since the hokage had twisted his request into 'don't send him on any missions without me' he was stuck. He looked at Shikamaru as he slowly read and wondered if he would really be up to a mission. His hand moved and rubbed the back of the brunet's head without its owner's knowledge. There was a bump, large enough that it could have been another brain growing in the already brilliant teen's head. A noise brought Neji back to himself and he pulled his hand back quickly. "Sorry," he said quickly. "I shall see you tomorrow then." Neji left with wide eyes. He couldn't believe he'd done that.

Shikamaru stared after Neji. He couldn't believe that he'd just touched him, and the look on his face when he did it was even more shocking than his actions. Placing his hand where Neji's had been he felt the bump and frowned. He picked up the folder and started reading about the mission. It was an odd one, he wasn't even sure he actually understood what they were supposed to do. A reconnaissance, or a retrieval? He shrugged and dropped the papers to his desk. A small smile crossed his face as he realized he didn't have to be here anymore. He could go home. He cringed, well not home. He wouldn't go home, but he could if he had wanted to. He gathered his jacket and slipped it on before leaving. He walked slowly and carefully down the stairs. Honestly he was scared of stairs now. Not scared enough that he wouldn't use them. No. He wasn't scared, he was just wary. Yea, he was just wary. Not scared. Shikamaru repeated that every stair trying to convince himself.

He walked for a while not really going anywhere. His head was throbbing still and it prevented him from actually thinking about anything. So he just kind of walked and actually looked at the town. Believe it or not, he'd never in all his years actually looked at it. He had always been in serious thought, or serious cloud watching while he walked. You didn't really need to watch where you were going when you walked, people tended to get out of the way, and if they didn't... you'd bump into them. Simple as that.

Shikamaru ended up laying on his back just outside the busy streets on a little field of grass. He rested his hands on the back of his arms and watched the clouds. He could spend his whole day here and if nothing interrupted him he would.

Neji had just started his little shopping spree when he saw the gang of people who had been in Shikamaru's room the day before. Out of instinct he tried to hide, but one of the boys saw him and called him over. Kiba smiled as he walked over. Hinata waved and beamed up at him. Neji couldn't help but smile too. It was the effect she had on him. After a few minutes the crew disrupted. Hinata and her teammates joined him. The boys bickered and fell back a few feet. Kiba appeared to be losing, that was until Shino said something under his breath and Kiba hit him and ran off. Hinata gasped and followed. Shino just stared at Neji. "What did you say?" No! Neji hadn't been spying, he hadn't. The honorable Hyuuga wouldn't spy on a conversation he wasn't in, but he hadn't been able to hear what he'd said, and he wanted to know.

"Nothing," Shino mumbled. "I'm sorry, but I should go check on them." He bowed his head and started off lazily in the direction his teammates had gone. The way he walked reminded him of Shikamaru, but then again everything was reminding him of the chunin. And as if on cue a pineapple was shoved in his face. The vendor was talking too fast for Neji to understand and he started backing off, but the man just followed him, and it seemed to attract more of the people selling products. Neji ran. Neji, prodigal son, semi-unbeatable nin, ran. He ran as if his life depended on it, and knowing the vendors it actually might have ended like that.

As if by fate, and who knows, it might have been fate since those twisted sisters love to play with their strings, he tripped. He couldn't tell what he tripped over, that was until he heard the thing's shout and turned to see Shikamaru looking at him part in shock and part pure rage. But then, who wouldn't get angry at the person who tripped over them and effectively ended the nap they were having, after getting almost no sleep the night before because they weren't 'allowed' to sleep. Neji looked at Shikamaru and panicked. He wasn't sure why he was panicking, but he was. He scrambled to his feet. That in itself was a strange sight to see, because the grass caused him to trip and almost fall back to the ground a few times. "I'm sorry," he hissed before running off. Shikamaru just stared after him, and once he was out of sight clutched his hand to his chest and tried to breath. He'd forgotten to the whole time, and after the dream he'd been having, to see Neji... he just couldn't remember how.

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Author's Note.

Um... Yea... part deux. I can't really think of what to say here, but I don't like not having one. (kind of been forgetting lately though. o.O)

Any pointers, suggestions, critiques, even mean ones, are welcome.


	3. Wait

Disclaimer: Don't own it.

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It was a cold morning, colder than most had been lately. Even the clouds seemed to be hiding from the cold. Shikamaru thought that odd, since when did the clouds hide from cold. They didn't hide from anything. They didn't feel cold, so why did they even care? He cared though because he could feel the cold and he did feel it. He'd been sitting outside his house for two hours waiting. Neji had said morning and he'd woken up, yes, he could, early to make sure he wasn't late. He should have gotten a time. A specific time. That way instead of freezing he could be sleeping. Just as he stood to go back inside, as he had done several times before, but talked himself out of it that the Hyuuga boy would be there in a few minutes, he heard footsteps on the road. He poked his head out and frowned. It wasn't Neji.

The woman passed, her dark eyes narrowed on the odd boy shivering on his porch. He watched her with half closed eyes, the cold was beginning to get to him, he should just go back inside. Every part of his body was crying for him to go back inside, but he still sat and watched the empty street. The empty street, that mocked him by staying empty for a while, then would have one person walk down it, to get Shikamaru's hopes up, but no, it was never Neji. Never the one person Shikamaru wanted to see.

Neji yawned as he sat up in bed. He stretched and looked around in a daze. His hair was frizzed and was piled high upon his head in a bun. A few blinks and his eyes finally found the clock. He blinked again, trying to recognize the numbers and what they meant. His half closed eyes flew open and covers flew off. He tripped as he scrambled off the bed and flopped to the floor with a thump and a grunt. Bed clothes were shed and others put on. A heavy coat was pulled hard, too hard for the rod it was hanging on causing it to clatter to the ground, and dragged behind him as he struggled with his shoes and ran out the door. Strands of his hair flittered in the wind, having fallen loose in his struggle, but most of it was still pulled into a blob atop his head.

Shikamaru had given up on waiting and decided he would go to Neji's. He walked slowly and shivered in the coat he had finally gotten from his closet. He rubbed his hands together and paused at a corner. He turned and started down a side street. He couldn't remember exactly how to get to Neji's. He'd only been there once, and hadn't been totally lucid then.

He ran most of the way there only stopping once to help an old lady who had dropped her bag when he had bumped into her. He stopped just in front of his house and bent over trying to catch his breath. A few strides and he was knocking on the door. It echoed through the house, but no response was heard. He took in a breath and turned back to go back to his house.

Shikamaru stood just outside the Hyuuga compound. He didn't dare to knock at the gate, or call for Neji, he stood there for a few moments, unsure of what he was actually doing there, before turning back. He was being so strange. He wasn't being like himself at all. He looked up, the clouds still hidden, and wanted to shout at them to come back, but he didn't. He just looked back at the ground and wandered through the unfamiliar streets.

Neji walked quickly. He had run, but had quickly ran out of breath, and now he just walked to his house. He wanted to run, but also didn't. He didn't know where Shikamaru was, he could be walking the same stretch of land between their houses at the very moment. He looked back in the direction of the Nara house. Or he could be sleeping in his bed. Warm and comfortable. The image struck Neji and he turned back toward his house and started to run, turning a corner to take a short cut.

He wanted to be asleep, in his bed, hugging his pillow, in the warm. Not waiting for Neji, who wasn't going to come, and if he did he could just go wake him up. He looked up as he walked then down, his eyes practically yo-yo's as they rose and fell. His mind started to fill with the wonders of sleeping. He turned a corner, not really knowing where he was going, and was thrown to the ground. His eyes shot open, from their half open gaze.

Neji sat in the dirt, his eyes locked on his victim. The boy was shivering, and looked practically frozen, his lips turning blue. Neji's eyes lingered too long on those frost colored lips and he cleared his throat and stood. "Sorry." His reply was a snort and laughter. Shikamaru rocked back and forth. He calmed down enough to open his eyes, but was immediately back to laughing when he looked up at the Hyuuga. Neji was starting to panic. He looked at himself and wiped his face. He touched his hair, and grimaced. His face reddened to near explosive red and he pulled on the hair tie, only causing it to get further stuck in his wind strewn locks. He hissed in a breath when a chunk of hair pulled at his scalp sharply.

Cool fingers ran deftly through his hair and the holder was released. His hair cascaded down his back warming his face automatically. "There." Shikamaru slipped the band over his wrist and chuckled. He had forgotten completely about his mild anger and want of sleep when he had seen Neji. The tidy boy had looked completely thrown together and falling apart. He had felt bad for him. "Wake up late?" the lazy boy guessed as he walked back to his house. Neji followed beside him his head hanging and hair hiding his face. A ripple ran through his hair and Shikamaru took that as a nod.

Neji was looking through the stuff in Shikamaru's bathroom trying to find something to pull his hair back with. He pulled out a box and found a few ribbons, most of them too short to do any good. He found one, but didn't want to use it. He couldn't really figure out why it was even there. He checked his pocket for the seventh time before grabbing the ribbon and walking out of the bathroom. Shikamaru was sitting at the kitchen table a cup of cocoa in his hands and a blanket over his shoulders. The shivering had stopped, but he still looked cold. "Took you long enough."

"What is this?" Neji asked holding the ribbon out for the brunet to see. "A ribbon." Shikamaru replied dully. "It's pink and has flowers on it." A grumble and a clank then the boy stood. "Ino and Chouji gave it to me as a gag gift, but since it was a gift I can't throw it away. Ok? I have an outfit that matches that..." Shikamaru stopped talking and snatched the ribbon from Neji's hands that had gone stone. He stuffed the ribbon in his pocket and sat back down, not bothering with the blanket that had fallen to the floor. He glared at the cup and the steam coming off it. His eyes flicked to Neji who had turned back to flesh then back to the cup.

"Are you warm enough? We should leave soon." Neji looked at the clock and it became obvious he didn't want to be here anymore. He looked around the small room and the comfort it gave him made him feel like he was home. It made him uncomfortable. The mixture was making him queasy and he just wanted out. Add Shikamaru who made him uncertain by just looking at him, and he was dying. He looked at the clock again and clicked his tongue. A nervous habit he couldn't break.

The continuing clicks were beginning to grate on his nerves. He gripped the handle of his cup as he sipped it and resisted the urge to throw it down and yell at the older boy. A look to the clock then three clicks. The table two clicks, clock and clicks again. Oh floor this time. Four clicks. Clock and three. Shikamaru stood. Him. A flutter of clicks before they stopped when Shikamaru slammed the empty cup down on the table. "Stop your damn clicking. It's driving me crazy!"

Neji stared and coughed to regain his breath. He stared at the boy then looked at the clock. He was just about to say something when Shikamaru beat him to it. "Yes, we can leave." He grabbed his jacket and pulled it on. Neji followed suit and they left the warm house. The sun was beginning to warm the cold air. The clouds were still gone and Shikamaru's mood was darkening with every step. Neji held his tongue, not with his finger, and tried to stay as quiet as possible. He didn't want to be yelled at again. The sun was at its highest and had brought the temperature up enough that Neji was baking under his blanket of hair. He slipped one of the holders he'd taken from Shikamaru and pulled his hair up. It bounced along happily.

Suddenly it started raining. Shikamaru cursed out loud and Neji ran under a tree. He hid from the rain and watched as the other boy stood in the rain. He stared up at the sky, now full of dark clouds. He mouthed something and turned to the tree. He sat at Neji's feet and dropped his head into his lap. "We're never going to get this mission done. I've been waiting for this, and now its being ruined." Neji looked at him and held his hands back. "We could continue." The spiky ponytail shook back and forth. "I'd get sick, and I'd be useless. I always do." The rain seemed to have taken all the anger and frustration out of the boy. Only leaving a defeated and empty shell. "If it rains enough maybe the enemy will get sick and we'll defeat 'em easily." Shikamaru shook slightly with laughter and Neji smiled. He was happy that he had cheered up the boy some.

"Strange weather isn't it?" Neji nodded and Shikamaru looked off into the distance pointedly. "You'd think they didn't want us to actually go on the mission." "Or take forever getting there." "Maybe one of us will die." Neji paused. The joking banter died. "Don't say that." Shikamaru shrugged. "Anything is possible with how things have been going lately."

The rain continued to fall and the boys were silent. Neji watched the rain falling and Shikamaru stared at the ground as it turned to mud and puddles of rain water. "I wouldn't be surprised if it started to snow." Shikamaru said with a laugh. He leaned back against the tree, his shoulder resting against Neji's knee and looked at the sky. "Look there's snow now." Neji looked up in shock and then laughed. "Funny." he bumped Shikamaru and went back to watching the water fall. "We're going to be here for a while if it keeps up like this. We should just continue on."

Shikamaru gave into the logic that they were going to be too late if they kept waiting for the rain to let up and stood. He looked at Neji. "I'm warning you that I'm going to get sick." Neji shrugged lazily and walked into the rain. "Then I'll finish the mission and get all the glory. And save you're lazy..." A clod of mud suddenly hit him and he took off running as another came hurdling toward him.

The pair ran for some time. They didn't notice when the rain stopped, or when sun started to dry their clothes. Neji ducked behind a tree and Shikamaru tumbled to the ground when a foot darted out at the last minute. "Not fair!" The younger boy whined and pulled Neji down. Shikamaru froze as did Neji. They looked around and all their laughter was gone.

* * *

Author's Note:

Um... I have two versions of this, and the first one was on my dA for about a week then I deleted it and wrote this, I think its better... definitely has a better story line... and sorry about the cliff hanger. I swore I wouldn't do that, but its too late to continue. I'll make sure and write the next one and get it up soon. So don't worry. If any one even was... :(


	4. Ask

Disclaimer: don't own

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Neji unlatched himself from Shikamaru. They both looked around anxiously. The fact that the other had reacted alarmed them both. They had thought that they were just imagining it. Another loud crash, metal biting metal sounded. They inched forward slowly. A battle was raging on before them. The battle suddenly ended. Neji realized right away that it had been no battle. They were training. Shikamaru watched in amazement as the two nin's walked forward slowly. The boys both turned and ran as the battle ended and another began.

The Hyuuga's pale face was red with embarrassment. Meanwhile Shikamaru was staring at where they had been. He was smiling to himself. "Did you see that?" Neji's wide eyes sharpened. He frowned and shook his head. "Too bad."

Neji _had_ seen it. He had been reminded of a few thoughts that he had buried deep in the recesses of his mind. Thoughts that had been starring the boy next to him. Only one thing was bothering him though. He couldn't figure out why the brunet was so intrigued. Certainly it should alarm him more than he was. He was laughing. Laughing about it. "What's so funny?" He asked crisply. He hand moving to his hip.

"It just reminded me of something," he replied stifling his laughter. Pretty soon it was gone and he was back to his sober self. Neji was still bothered by what they had seen, but didn't let it show. They gave a wide berth to the pair in the small clearing. Shikamaru's gaze lingered on the bushes surrounded the clearing, but he continued. "The ground must hurt," he suddenly said. Neji jumped and swallowed a scream. They both had been silent for some time. The sun was beginning to set even though it was hardly noticeable due to the cloud coverage. "What?" Shikamaru looked up at Neji. "The ground. It has to hurt. Could you imagine the scratches?" Neji blanched. Had he been reading his mind? The entire time he had thought about nothing but things such as that.

They stopped under a tree as the last of the sun exited the trees. They really weren't making good time at all. Shikamaru and Neji had argued over stopping. The Hyuuga had insisted on it. Shikamaru couldn't understand why. He was grumbling as he shifted against the tree while Neji was standing next to him, his sharp eyes searching the darkness. He nodded to himself and sat. He didn't close his eyes like the younger boy had. Instead he watched the creeping darkness with weary caution.

The darkness was being broken up when Neji opened his eyes. He didn't remember falling asleep. The last thing he remembered was watching the rain as it feel. He had hardly been able to see the dark droplets, but as the lightning struck and illuminated the sky they had been beautiful, and he hadn't been able to take his eyes off them. He stirred and didn't feel anything around him. He panicked and shot up.

"Geez. Give me a heart attack." Shikamaru grumbled. Neji looked to his side where the boy had been when he fell asleep then up to the yawning face above him. "Do you always do that when you wake up?" The joke was lost Neji who was lost again in his thoughts. He had to do something. The waiting, the anticipation, was killing him.

Today would be the day. It had to be. He would think about it, then do it. Right then. No backing out. He had to do this before they got to their destination. There was no guarantee they would both go back. The idle comment Shikamaru had said was festering in his head. He rubbed his hair and wished he had something to hold it back.

"What would you say if someone asked you out?" Neji had played bored and had started a bout of questions. Most of them were what ifs and it was working brilliantly. "It depends on who it was." Shikamaru was studying the flora as they passed. "List some." Neji frowned. He gulped and tried to think of an order that would make it inconspicuous.

"Ino." The boy cringed. "She would never stop talking. I'd probably go deaf." Neji checked that name off and went on to the next one. "Hinata." Shikamaru looked over to Neji and frowned. "She wouldn't." He replied simply. Neji's supply of girls was running low. "Tenten?" A slight pause, like he was trying to remember her. "Nah... I don't know her." Neji nodded quickly and moved on. "Sakura." "Sasuke." He replied without a thought. "That sand girl." He couldn't think of any other girls, and she was the last, even if he couldn't remember her name. Shikamaru didn't reply. He seemed to be considering it. Neji couldn't believe what he had done. He was giving him ideas. He hadn't meant to. "Temari is too far away." Shikamaru finally replied. Neji sighed with relief and continued on his list.

"Chouji?" He started off with an easy one, hoping that it wouldn't be obvious he was changing the list to boys. "Best friend." Shikamaru hadn't been shocked at all and the Hyuuga was getting hopeful. "Naruto." "Sasuke." Neji looked at the boy and cocked his head. "Seriously?" "Yea, the pair yesterday reminded me of them." He shook his head to clear it and got back to the list. "Lee." "Eh... He's too loud." "Gaara?" "Complete opposite. He's too quiet. Plus he tried to kill me." Neji shrugged. That made sense. He paused. "Kiba?" Shikamaru laughed. "I'm allergic to dogs." Neji fought back a snicker. "Shino." "Eh... He's like Gaara." Neji smirked. "He tried to kill you?" "No." Shikamaru laughed. The chuckling died down and Neji was left with one person. He shut his mouth. He wasn't about to add himself in there, as he had planned. "I guess that's it." Shikamaru looked at him.

The turn for questioning was now on Shikamaru, but he said nothing. The silence bugged Neji. He had chickened out, and now felt even more afraid that... "You left out someone." A cringe. That exactly this would happen. "Who?" He choked out. "You." "So I did." He mumbled, refusing to meet the boy's eyes. "Do you want to hear my answer?" Neji's head was screaming no, but he did want to. "I'll tell you later. We need to get this mission done with." Shikamaru smiled and continued to walk. Neji frowned and followed him.

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Hmm... Yea. This is kind of just a filler chapter. There's really nothing to it. I still hope you like it though. 


	5. Heal

The leaves rippled, they just flittered around in the small breeze, it wasn't even a breeze though. It was the small stream of air that escaped from Shikamaru as he slept. He breathed in and out softly. As he dreamt his eyes twitched and every time Neji froze. He stopped moving, in hopes that if the boy woke he would be still enough not to be seen. He'd been watching the sleeping nin for the past few minutes, ever since he'd been torn awake by a strange dream. He couldn't remember the dream, just that he didn't like it.

A leaf floated down, as it entered Neji's line of sight his light eyes were immediately drawn to it. He watched it as it landed gently on a pale cheek. Forlorn, he sighed. He wished that he could be the leaf, to rest on that soft cheek. He frowned. He couldn't believe himself. He had just wished he was a leaf. A leaf. Just because it could touch the boy and he couldn't. He didn't know why he wanted to, but he wanted to touch that skin, and wanted it to touch him too. He reached out and lightly took the leaf between his fingers.

The worst in Neji's mind that could have happened, did just that, it happened. Shikamaru woke up. He must have sensed something, because his reaction was strong, and not of a person who was just woken up, but of someone who had been ripped from sleeping due to danger. The suddenly active boy struck out blindly. Neji scrambled back, when he reached the tree behind him he stopped and pressed a hand to his cheek. It burned. He pulled his hand back to see it stained red.

Shikamaru gasped when he saw who he'd just attacked. He was immediately next to Neji and was poking at the Hyuuga's cheek. The pain was sharp, but dulled as the seconds passed. After a few awkward moments, Shikamaru finally got the bandage on. Neji wouldn't move, his feet were locked in place, and his hands hovered over the gash. "This would be so much easier if you would move." Neji just shook his head. Shikamaru seemed satisfied with that because he grabbed Neji's chin as it was turning and held it in place. "Don't move." He pressed the gauze against his cheek and finished the bandaging. "There, all better." He smiled slightly at the boy who hadn't said a word, and looked like he was going to break any second.

- - - -

"I said I was sorry."

"If it scars..." Neji left his threat unfinished. He didn't really know what he would do if it scarred. His hand rubbed the bandage on his face in reflex. He knew now what would happen if he tried to touch Shikamaru. He wouldn't try that again. He sighed, he hadn't even been trying to touch him. He had just wanted to be the leaf. The stupid leaf, why did it have to fall on him anyway? It could have fallen just two inches in another direction and it would have been fine. None of this would have happened.

He glanced over and regretted it, Shikamaru was looking at him, his eyes trained on him. They made him frown. Pity. He was sorry. He hadn't meant to hurt him. Neji turned away angrily. It had been a reflex. All of it, and he hadn't been able to stop it at all. How pathetic was he? He'd been injured by a boy younger than him. Even if his rank was higher it wasn't because of skill. It was because he was smart. So what? He was smart, and strong. More than this... he looked over to Shikamaru who was now glaring at him. "This what?" The brunet stopped and put at hand on his hip. He had been around Ino too much and was now imitating her. Neji looked at him in confusion. "You were talking out loud idiot." Shikamaru pushed Neji back. "You think you're better than me?" He pushed again. "Just because you're older." He pushed again this time harder, he was getting angrier. "Huh? OLD MAN?" He pushed Neji one last time, but he didn't move any, he was already against a tree. Normally he would have ignored what had been said, and if anyone else had said it he would have. He shouldn't care, but he did. He didn't want Neji to think about him like that. He pulled off his vest and threw it at Neji. "You can be a chunin if you want it so bad. I don't even want this stupid thing." He took a step forward. "How does it feel to be beat out by someone that didn't even want it?"

He took a step back and started walking off. He needed to calm himself down. He felt like he was losing himself. He shouldn't have done that. He should have just let it be. Ignore it like he always did when people talked about him, but he just couldn't do it. It just hurt too much to ignore. Maybe that was why he didn't add himself in the list. He looked back at Neji who was still against the tree. He didn't want to be on it, he didn't want to be considered, because he didn't like him. Or even hated him? Shikamaru stuck his hands in his pockets to keep them from trembling as he quickened his pace. He had to get home. He'd get back to normal and forget all about this when he got back.

Neji stared after Shikamaru. He'd said that out loud? He watched until Shikamaru was gone before starting back. He knew the boy wanted to be alone. He was using it as an excuse though. He wanted to be alone too. He had to apologize. He hadn't meant what he'd said, what he'd been thinking. His stupid pride had ran away with his thoughts, and mouth. Maybe he should just let his heart run away with himself as well. Things couldn't get worse. At least he couldn't imagine that happening.

He got back to the village and didn't see Shikamaru at all. He decided he'd give himself some time to cool off. He went to the Hokage first to make his report. He walked slowly up the stairs, his mind wondering to the incident a few days past. He couldn't believe that it was only a few days ago. It seemed so much longer, weeks, months. He stopped thinking before he could let the sentence even form, a cheesy sentence, about how he couldn't remember his life before Shikamaru and the banana peel. He laughed lightly to himself. The sound of footsteps brought his attention back to the real world and out of his mind.

"I've already made the report." Shikamaru said as he passed Neji. His eyes were only on the stairs below him though. He was still wary of the stairs, not wanting to fall again. "So you can go home and heal." Only the sounds of his own footsteps echoed through the stairwell. He looked up at Neji and paused. There was something different, or wrong.

The railing was biting painfully into his back and his foot was hanging in the air between stairs, but he didn't notice them at all. The pale hands on his face and the sweet lips on his were all he could focus on. Neji had moved too fast for him to react, but now that he was pressed up against the wall he didn't care.


	6. Love

As the light broke through the blinds they covered Shikamaru's closed eyes. He stirred and looked around sleepily. He yawned and sat up. The covers slid down into his lap, as did something heavier. Something heavier and something alive. As well as attached to something bigger. He looked over and his jaw dropped. He pinched himself. He had to still be dreaming. The pinch hurt and he poked at the body next to him. It moved and he jumped. He ran out of the room to the bathroom before anything could wake up. He started the shower and flinched as the sound echoed. He put his finger to his mouth and tried to tell it to shush.

He went to the door and opened it a cr ack. The pale arm still rested across the middle of the bed. Black hair flowed through the rest of the bed and a pale shoulder peeked out from under the sheets. Shikamaru couldn't help but smiling and when he realized he was, he shut the door. He wasn't dreaming. Neji really was asleep in his bed. He was halfway through the shower when everything that had happened hit him.

He finished with his shower and went back to his room. There was no sign that Neji was conscious, he was breathing, the sheets rose and fell rhythmically. Shikamaru stared. He didn't know what to do. He poked him as he had before but got no response. He shook him slightly, but again no response. He smirked. That could work. He sat down and leaned over the sleeping form. He blew lightly in the exposed ear and Neji twitched. He blew again, softer this time. A groan. Now that he was semi-conscious, Shikamaru shook Neji softly. Pale eyes opened partly and looked at Shikamaru questioningly.

"Morning," he said quietly. Neji rolled over and sat up some. He moved slowly and carefully. "Hi," Neji croaked, his throat hoarse. Shikamaru melted. The half smile and voice was too cute for him to handle. He stood and mumbled something about getting breakfast before leaving. He grabbed the first thing that looked like it could be breakfast and headed back upstairs. Neji was standing in the middle of his room. His pants were back on and he had his shirt pulled up his arms. He paused, just before slipping it over his head. Shikamaru was speechless, not that he had been meaning to say anything anyway. "What is that?" Neji asked, his voice almost back to normal. He nodded to the plate in Shikamaru's hands before slipping the shirt on the rest of the way and pulling it down.

"Food... I think," he added when he looked at the plate. It was food, but he didn't really know what. Neji chuckled and Shikamaru jumped. "I think I'll go get something else." He was opening the door when Shikamaru's hand flattened against it. "No." His parents were home, and he couldn't explain what Neji was doing there. Something must have shown in his eyes because Neji took the plate and went back to the bed. He sat indian style on it and picked at the blob on the plate. "I know what this is." Neji said after taking his finger out of his mouth. "You didn't cook it." Shikamaru hadn't moved from the door. He didn't understand why he was the only one freaking out about the situation they were in. "Neji..." He couldn't continue.

"It's ok. Find me later." Neji handed the plate to Shikamaru. He smiled slightly and held Shikamaru's cheek lightly. Shikamaru leaned into the contact. He nodded and Neji left, using the window since Shikamaru was still guarding the door. He had to figure out what he was going to do. What they were going to do.

Neji sat on the first bench he could find. His eyes saw nothing in front of him, he rubbed a tender spot on the back of his neck as he shifted. He wanted to believe that he wasn't hurt by how ashamed Shikamaru seemed to be, but he just couldn't. After all this was all his fault. If he'd kept it to himself everything would be fine. There would be no shame. He wouldn't have to look at Shikamaru and see the horror. He had been sitting on the bench for a few minutes without blinking. The wind blew harshly and he blinked. He felt something next to him, he wasn't sure how long it had been there, but when he looked to his side and saw Shikamaru he felt like dying.

"I don't know what to do," Shikamaru whispered when he noticed Neji was looking at him. He wasn't looking at Neji though, he was staring up into the sky. After a few minutes he sighed. "Do you?" Neji shook his head. The silence grew, but neither boys had any desire to say anything. They seemed to be deciding on their own what they were going to do. Shikamaru decided first. He smiled slightly and relaxed some. Neji was still debating on whether or not he had done right.

"Neji, you know what I haven't told you?" Shikamaru said simply he looked over to Neji who was peeking at him through the loose strands of his hair. "No." Shikamaru smiled and looked back to the front. "You're stubborn, and way too prideful. You think you are perfect and when that perfection is threatened you sulk." Neji was shrinking away. Shikamaru's words cut at him because they were too true. "But that's only because you're so nice, and don't want people to take advantage of it, like they did for your dad. You're so kind and beautiful, and so easy to be around. Not troublesome at all." He looked away, unable to hide the blush covering his face. "I think that's why I love you."

Neji's eyes widened and he looked up at Shikamaru who had stood. "Are you going to say anything?" Shikamaru asked. Neji nodded. "I think I've fallen for an immature know-it-all." He smiled and Shikamaru laughed. "Who is it? I'll have to kill them." He leaned down and kissed the laughing Hyuuga.


End file.
